German industrial orders fell unexpectedly in April by 0.4% on the previous month on a seasonally and calendar

Barron’s asked veteran fund managers and investment strategists how a financially secure individual with a diversified portfolio should invest $100,000 now. Here’s what they said.

Artificial intelligence is using gallons upon gallons of water. Microsoft alone used more than 2,500 Olympic-sized swimming pools of water in its data centres last year. The latest numbers are leading to yet more questions about the sustainability and environmental dangers of the growth of artificial intelligence and related technology. Artificial intelligence requires vast computing resources, undertaking deeply complex calculations on behalf of people around the world. AI systems tend to be run in the cloud rather than on individual people’s computers, meaning that companies running them must operate vast server farms to deal with the queries of their users. Those server farms in turn need to pump in water to cool themselves down, because of the heat generated by those computers. That has long been a concern for environmentalists, but the sharp growth in artificial intelligence has led to even more use. Microsoft’s water consumption rose 34 per cent between 2021 and 2022, according to its latest environmental report, highlighted by the Associated Press. It was up to almost 1.7 billion gallons. Not all of that is from artificial intelligence. But Shaolei Ren, a researcher at the University of California, Riverside working to better understand the environmental impact of AI told the AP that the “majority of the growth” is because of the technology. Google also said that its water use had increased by 20 per cent over the same period. That varied across its different data centres, which are based in different parts of the US. For each 5 to 50 prompts, or questions, put to ChatGPT, it uses 500 millilitres of water, according to a paper that will be published by Professor Ren and his team later this year. Many technology companies have expressed concerns about their own water use, and how to minimise any negative effects of their data centres. The environmental concerns can be especially pressing because the use of water can be focused in particular areas around a data centre, meaning that the damage may not be spread. Google said last year for instance that “Wherever we use water, we are committed to doing so responsibly”. That includes analysing where water is being used and how much stress it might put on the surrounding area, for instance. Read More AI can help generate synthetic viruses and spark pandemics, warns ex-Google executive China’s ‘government-approved’ AI chatbot says Taiwan invasion likely Google launches AI to go to meetings for you

By Navya Mittal Australia's Domino's Pizza Enterprises said on Tuesday it would shut 27 stores in Denmark, and

By Svea Herbst-Bayliss NEW YORK Bill Ackman's new investment vehicle, Pershing Square SPARC Holdings Ltd, marks a departure

Spotify has increased the subscription prices of its premium plan in many parts of the world, with an individual plan going up by £1 in the UK. The price rise comes following Spotify chief Daniel Ek suggesting during an April earnings call that there could be an increase in subscription fee soon. The changes also come as other streaming platforms, including Netflix and Apple Music raised their subscription prices recently. “The market landscape has continued to evolve since we launched. So that we can keep innovating, we are changing our Premium prices across a number of markets around the world,” the audio steaming giant noted in a blog post on Monday. “These updates will help us continue to deliver value to fans and artists on our platform,” it said. In the US, the company said the premium plan for individuals would now cost $10.99 (£8.55) a month up from the charge of $9.99 (£7.77) it has levied since the platform’s launch in 2011. Along with the price rise for a single individual premium subscription plan, the cost of Duo is increasing from $12.99 (£10.11) to $14.99 (£11.6), and for the Family plan from $15.99 (£12.44) to $16.99 (£13.22), and the one for students from $4.99 (£3.88) to $5.99 (£4.66). “We will raise it and that price increase will go down well because we’re delivering a lot of value for our customers,” Mr Ek said, noting that the changes would happen “when the timing is right.” Spotify said users would be given a “one-month grace period” before the new prices take effect. Other countries where the new price regime will take effect include Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Spain, Finland and France, among several others. “Starting from today, existing subscribers in these markets will receive an email explaining what this means for their account,” the company said. “We occasionally update our prices as we continue to innovate and invest in giving you better listening experiences and more value than ever before.” Read More Sony has officially unveiled the new WF-1000XM5 wireless earbuds – here’s everything you need to know WWF capitalizes on death of Twitter bird logo to highlight real species facing extinction Watch the moment Twitter blue bird sign is taken down from San Francisco HQ

Artist Saype, known for his murals around the world, unveiled on Friday a piece painted on rubble in the southern Turkish city Antakya...

Nothing says “luxury” quite like an expensive lip balm. Sure, drugstore stuff gets the job done — but we deserve nice things, don’t we? However, to call Kylie Cosmetics‘ new Tinted Butter Balms simply a lip balm almost seems wrong. Not because the new drop doesn’t do everything you’d expect a good lip balm to do — hydrate and soothe dry, cracked lips — but because it does all that and so much more.

By Steven Scheer and Ari Rabinovitch JERUSALEM The Bank of Israel hiked benchmark interest rates to their highest

By Jason Xue and Summer Zhen SHANGHAI/HONG KONG China's annus horribilis has seen its stock markets fall, funds

BEIJING China's outstanding structural monetary policy tools totalled 7.018 trillion yuan ($959 billion) at end-September, its central bank

Internet claims that's an 'expensive illustration' after Tristan Tate shares his go-to fashion tip